CHAPTER 28 "After that, many of His disciples went back and did not walk with Him anymore" (John 6:66).
[1] "After that many of His disciples went back and did not walk with Him anymore." [2] This text, as you say, suits our cause in every respect! [3] Why did many of My disciples leave Me and no longer wanted to walk with Me, as I gave them the doctrine of the enjoyment of My flesh and blood? For the time being the cause of this phenomenon lay in the inertia of My disciples, but immediately afterwards in their haughtiness. [4] In lethargy, the reason was that they did not eve want to put in the effort to at least ask Me - as my brothers did afterwards - how such teaching should be understood. [5] Arrogance was therefore the result: Since the disciples were too lazy for the time being to commit themselves to a higher cognition, but were still My disciples, it now annoyed them that I gave a lesson that went beyond their cognitive horizon. As a result they felt ashamed before the other people because they had not understood Me either, but because of their pride they did not want to ask Me in front of the people, in order not to look as if they had not understood Me as My disciples. [6] For it usually happened after a teaching of Mine, that the people would interrogate the disciples how this or that was to be understood. Then there were usually a lot of declarations on the part of My disciples, and their ambition often tasted so much praise from the people, for their intelligible explanation of some less understandable doctrine. [7] On this occasion too, many of these disciples were asked about the meaning of this doctrine, but this time they were unable to give any explanation, because they had not understood the teaching itself; therefore they escaped the noose this time in a different way. They accused Me of a hard doctrine which no human being could understand, and since it did not pay them any honour before the people, they rather reviled Me, declared all My earlier doctrine as identical (incomprehensible) with this one and that they no longer believed Me, and left Me. [8] From this most accurate description of life at that time, anyone can recognize with the greatest ease that there was nothing to blame for this evil result except, first, the laziness and then the pride of My disciples. The laziness, because they were always around Me and believed to understand as much as I - why should they make any effort to penetrate deeper into the spirit of My teaching? -; but arrogance aroused when I put them to the test, how much they understood, and showed them plainly that the disciple is not above the master. [9] And see, these two root causes are also the mainstays of most depravity of the human race! For at first man is lethargic and idly stands there all day long. But when he is asked, "Why do you stand idle the whole day?" He will say, "Nobody hired me!" [10] And when I then say to him, "At least go for the evening, and work for an hour, and I will give you what is right!", He will say, "Lord, how can you put this shame on me and let me face the laughter of those who have worked all day?! If you want me to earn something, rather give it to me, but do not make me look like a lazy person to the workmen!" [11] See, the lazy one did not want to work here at first; but in the end he is ashamed to work before the diligent! Why then? - Because that does not flatter his hidden pride! He would like to have his salary, as well as his pride, with the diligent ones; but at first he is too lazy to work and soon afterwards, too haughty. [12] But the Lord will not be so unwise and equate the laziness and arrogance with the good and reward him! (Explanation of Scriptures, chap. 28)
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